Maison St-Raphaël Honours Philanthropists’ Exceptional Commitment to Palliative Care Mission

Written by Jeff Felix

Pictured, from left to right: Rita Kataroyan, head of the fundraising in honor of Marie Michèle, Marie Michèle Del Balso, former president of the board, Paula Pedicelli, head of the fundraising in honor of Marco and Marco Ottoni, founding member and vice-president of the board.

On January 14, 2025, Maison St-Raphaël honoured Marco Ottoni, an engaged citizen of the Town of Mont-Royal, and Marie Michèle Del Balso, for their remarkable involvement in its palliative care mission.

From the very beginning of the project to Maison St-Raphaël’s opening in 2019, these two contributors demonstrated their unshakable commitment. Del Balso, pioneer and seven-year president of the Maison St-Raphaël board of directors, is still actively involved in the organization. A founding member and the vice-president of the board of directors, Otoni has now dedicated over 15 years to the cause full time. Their commitment has directly improved the quality of life of hundreds of patients at the end of life and their caregivers in Montréal.

“From the very first moment Marco and Marie Michèle got involved in the fantastic project to open Maison St-Raphaël, it was clear they didn’t believe in giving up. They overcame many challenges before the opening in 2019 and have since continued to help us with the same intense perseverance, love, inspiration and passionate determination. Today, Maison St-Raphaël is not only a place to receive care. It is above all a place that, like them, puts people first with love and reassurance.” 

Olivia Lévêque
Executive Director of Maison St-Raphaël

Room names

In recognition of their extraordinary commitment to Maison St-Raphaël, we have renamed two rooms in their honour. Room 1 is now named for Marie Michèle Del Balso and Room 3 for Marco Ottoni, indicative only of the gratitude of everyone at Maison St-Raphaël, but also of the lasting impact of these two contributors’ commitment to quality end-of-life care offered free of charge to all Montrealers.

The celebration was also an opportunity to collect funds in their honour. A total of $144,610 was raised, enabling Maison St-Raphaël to continue to offer its high-quality and compassionate care, free of charge, to people living with an incurable disease and their caregivers and to the bereaved.

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